1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a card-type biometric identification device and a method therefor, and more particularly to a biometric identification card embedded with a chip-type fingerprint sensor to provide the real-time identification for the card holder, wherein the biometric identification card may replace the credit card, the personal identification card, the driver's license, the passport, the social welfare card, the health insurance card, and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
The banks and government have to spend a lot of labors and money to prevent the serious criminal acts such as unauthorized transactions of the credit cards, the uses of fake identification cards, and the uses of fake passports. However, the conventional method for implementing the data confidentiality using, for example, the personal identification number (Personal PIN) and the password tends to be easily unauthorized used. Consequently, the method utilizing the personal biometric characteristic as the key has become a most economic and practical method. More particularly, because of the convenience and the long-term stability of the minutia point of the fingerprint, using a fingerprint-based biometric identification card to replace the conventional credit card, personal identification card, passport, health insurance card, and the like, has become an important goal of the technology development.
Löfberg discloses a data carrier using the above-mentioned concept in U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,985. The device has a dimension like the commonly-used credit card, and the device mainly includes a fingerprint sensor and a signal reading and comparison circuit. The identity of the card holder may be judged by comparing the read fingerprint data from the fingerprint sensor and the previously stored fingerprint data. However, the device can only provide an indicator (e.g., LED) to identify whether or not the card holder is the authorized card holder, which means that the unauthorized transaction may be made as long as the indicator on a fake card is driven and controlled.
Gullman et al. disclose another method in U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,527, in which a time-varying pseudorandom-code generating program is provided in addition to the original biometric identification. The pseudorandom-code generating program generates a set of digits representing the personal identification according to the identified fingerprint data. Finally, the host system executes the decoding and/or decryption process according to the digits and thus generates a set of fixed code and a correction factor for identification. The '527 patent may solve the drawback of '985 patent. In the method of the '527 patent, however, complicated decryption and/or decoding operations have to be performed in the host system. Thus, the loading of the host system is increased, and the processing speed of the host system is also decreased. Meanwhile, the procedures for personal identification are performed by the operator who has to record the displayed digits on the card and then input the digits to the terminal system, and mistakes tend to occur in the procedures. In addition, in the overall procedures, there is no interaction, such as how to inform the terminal system the personal identification data (I.D. data), between the identification device and the terminal system.
Lane discloses still another method in U.S. Pat. No. 5,623,552, wherein a magnetic stripe serves as the device for communicating with the host system in order to effectively overcome the drawback of the '527 patent. However, the data recorded in the magnetic stripe is fixed and the same as that of the currently used credit card with the magnetic stripe, which must be accessed in a card reader to transfer the card holder's information. This way may induce the most frequently happening problem that the personal data is easily intercepted.
In addition, the above-mentioned prior arts disclose no detail descriptions with respect to the used power. Even if the above-mentioned devices contain embedded power supplies, the fingerprint comparison needs relatively large power consumption (the current is greater than 100 mA), therefore without a new ultra-thin battery can not satisfy the card application for the long-term usage. For example, the credit card or identification card is usually reissued after several years.